Bike Jax is bike culture blogged.
Our mission is to establish Jacksonville as a city that is increasingly safe, accessible, and friendly to bicycle transportation.
Email: bikejax at gmail dot com
Bike jax has learn that a new specialty bike shop has leased a spot in the Mary Built on Stockton St. I don't have all the details in yet. I do however know that this bike shop will be centralized around the use of bikes as transportation. The grand opening is planned to coincide with (or just prior) to The Night Ride. From what I have already learned about the owner. I expect this shop will be a major and much welcomed contributor to the bike scene in Jacksonville.
I have received so many emails inquiring where someone can find "dutch type bikes" or "bikes with style" here in Jacksonville after this previous post. I thought It might be helpful to those who have asked and those that have not yet done so to have a list of what "city" style bikes can be found at local bike shops in the Jacksonville area.
I'm also going finish this list up with a few bikes by manufactures that currently don't have local dealers. But, your local bike shop should be able to order one for you. Prices listed for each bike are the manufactures list price.
I have included a link to the website pages of each bike so you can see the spec of each and compare models. There is also a link to any independent reviews I was able to find.
All the bikes listed here have the following:
Upright Riding Position
Fenders - To keep water and other debris off
Chain Guard - So a rider need not make any alterations to his or hers street clothes prior to riding.
Multiple Speeds (Internal Hubs or Derailleurs)
Kick Stand - To steady the bike while racks and or panniers are loaded/unloaded.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------- I hope this helps some of you find what you are looking for. If you do, send us a picture or two of your new ride. Also let us know about your experience at the bike shop.
There are some really great bikes that I left off this list because they lacked just one of the requirements. They were missing either a kick stand, fenders or a chain guard. But those items could easily be added.
Also don't think you have to purchase new to find a quality commuter. Visit CycleDelic Fixity and check out what Brooklyn has or have him build you a new old ride. Or go to Zombie Bikes and have them help you build your own. My ride is a vintage Schwinn I picked up on Craig's List for $20 and then put another $40 in repairs and added a rack and panniers for one stylish fun daily ride.
Have you wondered what you would do if you had some type an emergency while at work after commuting with your bike? The First Coast MPO is now providing The Emergency Ride Home Program for those that Commute by bike, walking, car-pooling and using public transit.
The program funded by Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) provides you with 4 free rides per calendar year should any of the below occur while you are at the office.
• Personal or family illness or emergency • Carpool or vanpool driver having to leave early or stay late unexpectedly (vanpool driver is required to leave keys to designated secondary driver) • Unscheduled overtime approved by a supervisor • Your bicycle breaks down more than two (2) miles from home • Inclement weather (precipitation, extreme heat or high winds) at the close of the business day (walkers and bike riders only)
The program is easy to sign up for. Just go Here and download the PDF application. Fill it out and mail it to the address listed on the top of the first page.
You now have one less reason not to use your bike to commute.
If you need a quality messenger bag and are on limited funds. You can still get some custom love from the guys over at Burro Bags with their new Broke Ass Bag.
The basic Broke Ass Bag is made entirely out of highly durable recycled billboard material for a sweat shop like low price of $65. Or you can upgrade to one layer of billboard and one layer of heavy duty cloth (your choice of material) for an additional $10.
If you have yet to check out the bags from Burro you are truly missing out. These guys are creating some of the finest messenger bags made anywhere. And they are doing here in Jax. Support your local peeps.
NBC News Segment What Works did a 3 parter on Cycling.
Part One: About those making the switch to commuting and the what cities are doing to promote it. Part Two: The increased health and mood benefits. (Note: Positive Jacksonville Mention) Part Three: The growth of bike sales and commuters.
I have mentioned in previous posts that we here at Bike Jax are working on a number of projects. One of those projects took a huge leap to seeing fruition the last couple of weeks with the commitment of a couple of venues. I also received an education of the legal definition of "event" vs "happening" which will allow things move forward without tons of red tape.
I would like to formally announce The Night Ride. A bike "happening" to take place around mid-September. While the details of the everything have yet to be ironed out. Here is what is planned so far.
The Night Ride
Costume Contest: Theme: Bringing Back the Funk. Dust off your best 70's polyester and those leisure suits I know you have in the back of the closet. Also start pickn' out that fro and styling that sweet, sweet, 'stach.
Prizes for best outfit male & female Best mustache Best pimp & hoe
Bike Art Contest and Show Opening Official call to artist. All submitted work must pertain to bicycles or be made from bicycles in some form whether in part or whole. All works submitted will be available for purchase or auction. Open to all 2D and 3D medias. Awards an Prizes yet to be determined.
Bike Films (end destination of the night ride?) I am working on bring some of the films (if not the whole festival) from The Bicycle FIlm Festival. More news on that as it comes.
And of course The Night Ride complete with disco balls and the finest funk to ever jump out of a woofer.
I thought I was being all creative and smarty pants with this whole night ride thing. But no, those damn Portlanders have already done it.
For a little taste of what to expect for the night ride check out the video from the Portland Night Ride.
I am in desperate need of someone with mad graphic design skills for posters, flyers and whatever else. If anyone needs to pad their book, Bike Jax would be very grateful for the help. You would be rewarded with the self-satisfaction of bragging to friends & family, "Yea, I did that." You will also receive a hardy Bike Jax thank you and a slightly creepy hug.
"A major component of the Democrats' energy legislation is, and the Democrats' answer to the energy crisis is, hold on, wait one minute, I'm not making this up, it is"promoting the use of the bicycle! Watch this extraordinary two minute video of Rep Patrick McHenry decrying "19th century technology for a 21st century problem."
Oh, how the times are ah change'n. It wasn't long ago we had bobble-headed morons like the one above spewing ridicule at the thought of citizens giving up their cars in favor of the lowly bicycle. And now, a search for bike commuters in Goggle News brings up over 2500 articles since the beginning of June written about the mass of people doing just what was thought so vile by the bobble-headed Congressman from North Carolina.
July 17th is your chance to have some input about the future of transit here in Jacksonville. There are two meetings scheduled for the day. One in the morning and one in the evening for the working stiffs. Lets pack this meeting out and make sure that this city and JTA no longer make any plans without including infrastructure for both bicycles and pedestrians.
Downtown Transit Enhancement Phase One Public Hearing 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
City Hall - Committee Room A 117 West Duval Street Open House at 11 am; Presentaion at 1pm
Downtown Transit Enhancement Phase One Public Hearing 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
City Hall - Committee Rm. A 117 West Duval Street Open House at 4 pm; presentation at 6 pm ( I believe the first 2 hours of the meetings are an open house and the actual meetings don't start until 11am & 6pm)
This is the 55 minute narrated video of Jacksonville bike commuter, local artist and creator of JaxCal, Byron King. The video shot from a camera taped to the front of the riders bike is a bit Blair Witch shaky at times. But it is worth taking the time to watch as the video traces the route of Byron's daily ride from his home in the Southside thru San Marco over the Acosta Bridge and contiinuing thru Riverside, Avondale into his Ortega office.
You'll see from this video just what it is like to commute by bike in Jacksonville. Out of his 12 mile commute, only about a half mile has any bike lane. Due to Jacksonville's total lack of thought for pedestrians or cyclists. You will see what happens when a bike meets a pedestrian while on the Acosta. And most importantly, you'll see that bike commuting in jacksonville is not as difficult or as dangerous as the media would have you believe.
Shea owner of Flux Gallery shows some Bike Jax love at the FIve Points First Fridays Chalk Art Contest. If you have not yet visited Flux Gallery. Do so. They feature some of the finest local artists in Jacksonville.
Thinking of sharing your love of bikes with with some ever lasting skin art? Think your planned tat is the coolest design ever or do you already have that one-of-kind branding of your bike love and want to share it with our like minded folks?
Apparently, you can take the cop out of the car. But you can't the doughnut out of the cop. I found this great picture over at Chic Cyclist of bike cops keeping it real. Click on the image to view full size.
While perusing Craig's List this evening I came across this awesome collectable "special edition" Dr. Pepper theme bike. I'm not sure if it's the theme that makes the bike so special or that it appears to have been as assembled by this guy.
(Click For Larger)
I am however really curious as to why the owner would want to sell such a collectable item. I wonder if it could be that the bike is so unstable that it is near impossible to ride with the fork on backwards. Or perhaps it could be that every time he/she would attempt to make a turn the front tire would rub on their forward foot.
People, People, People. Support you local bike shops.
How many times have you heard, "I'd bike to work but...(insert excuse here)?" There are a lot of reasons people give for not riding their bike to work. But the root problem for whatever reason they don't ride is fear. Fear of change, fear of the unknown, fear of how society will view them, fear of traffic, fear of weather and most importantly fear of being alone.
In the hope of eliminating the fears of the new commuter and along with the hope of building a community for the new and experienced bike commuter alike for questions and support. Bike Jax is happy to announce as the first part of our Bike Commuter Services.** The Bike Commuter Mentors program. A program designed to pair up new riders with established cyclists that will help ease the uncertainties of the less experienced.
Become a Bike Commuter Mentor!
We encourage all experienced Bicycle Commuters in the Jacksonville and surrounding areas to join our pool of available Mentors. There is no required level of time for involvement. When a Bike Commuter Coordinator informs you of a new mentoring opportunity. You will decide whether it's right for you before your name is given to the prospective bike commuter. Bike Jax will make every effort to match you with other riders that live and commute within close proximity.
Mentors should be:
Somewhat experienced in using the bicycle for transportation.
Comfortable in urban cycling and riding in traffic.
Familiar with the roadways and geographical area they will mentor in.
Capable of effectively communicating with new commuters.
Able to recognize when a new commuter's bicycle is in need of maintenance or repair.*
If this sounds like you and you are willing to help others join our ranks, please contact us at bikejax@gmail.com
What Will I Have To Do As A Bike Mentor?
When you commit to mentor a new commuter, we expect that you will:
Respond promptly to the request for your assistance and be punctual in participation.
Know and abide by applicable traffic laws.
Always wears a helmet.
Be patient working with the new commuter, and respect a new commuter's decision to terminate a ride because of unacceptable risk or difficulty and work with them in finding an alternative or returning to their starting point.
Most mentoring engagements will extend over 2-4 weeks and progress through the following steps:
An introductory conversation over the phone or in person to learn or establish the new commuters route, level of cycling experience and needs along with tips on how to prepare.
As the new commuter prepares for their first ride, you'll answer their questions on equipment, clothing, supplies, and other "tricks of the trade".
Agreement on time and route for the new commuter's first ride to work and upon their ongoing commuting goal.
Accompany the new commuter on one actual commute during the new commuter’s normal commuting time.
Set realistic goals with the new commuter.
Be available for follow-up questions and suggestions as the new commuter gains experience.
Of course, we hope you and the entire mentor group will be able to maintain contact with most new commuters via the Bike Jax Commuter Support Group.
If you are interested in becoming a mentor or have additional questions. Please email bikejax@gmail.com
*Note: The Mentor is not required to perform any physical repairs to a new commuter’s bicycle.
** The Bike Jax Commuter Services is part of one of the many new programs Bike Jax will be offering once the website is up.
Back in February I posted a film about Ciclovia in Bogotá, Colombia. I wrote that several US cities were in the planning stages for their own car-free parkdays activity. Well, the first of those cities has launched their Ciclovia. Of course Portland, OR was the first US city up and running. Vancouver, BC had a car-free event that took place on Fathers Day. And New York City has announced that it will be closing streets starting August. Read about the NYC plan here, here and here.
Just a couple weeks ago I wrote about Jax Bike Taxi starting up service in Jacksonville. Now on Craig's List I find someone in Orlando selling a couple of pedicabs. Can Jacksonville support more than one pedicab service?
As I trolled through youtube I came across this is a video of traffic on Greenland Rd. at Sunset. As I watched this little clip I wondered if this was some kind of a metaphor for the end of car culture and suburbia. This is a very good example of where we in Jacksonville are in the way of multi-modal transportation or shared spaces. In this video you can make out the silhouette of construction barrels. As anyone who bikes, walks or drives, it is near impossible to travel anywhere within Jacksonville not have to deal with road construction and these barrels. You however will not see any cyclist, pedestrians or facilities for either in this video. Which is typical for Jacksonville and the reference, "You Are Here."
The below video of bike friendly cities is where we need to go. It is fairly long at 16 minutes. Take the time to give it a view. It has some great images and quotes like these listed below.
"If you can make a city move by bicycle, it will be more human." "While cars separate people, bicycles bring us together. Bicycles help build up a much more integrated and friendly socitey."
So if we are to achieve becoming a cycling friendly city. How do we go about it? How do we even start given how ingrained our society and culture is in the car?
During a late night/early morning conclusion to a Springfield Walking Cocktail Party while sitting on the porch of the Klutho House with other Riverside, Springfield and Downtown dwellers. The talked turned to why we choose to live where we do and why we work so hard to restore and maintain our homes. It was then that someone replied, "We do it because, whether we know it or it or not. We are the keepers of Jacksonville's history."
With permission from the the fantastic folks over at the Jacksonville Historical Society I would like to share a few pictures of our city's past. All these images can found within the pages of the Jacksonville Family Album. Click on the images for full size viewing.
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While we of the urban core may indeed be the keepers of Jacksonville's history. Many of those same people have also taken on the role of instigator for Jacksonville's present and future. Visit the many forums and blogs listed on the left hand side of this blog and get to know and join the caretakers of our great city's past, present and future.
